


The Bee's Knees

by shleepshleep



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), Alternate Universe - Restaurant, Beekeeper Hanamaki, First Meetings, M/M, Pastry Chef Matsukawa, no one asked for this, slowish burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-27
Updated: 2020-04-27
Packaged: 2021-03-01 17:40:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,243
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23871001
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shleepshleep/pseuds/shleepshleep
Summary: Matsukawa Issei is simply trying his best at his new job, but after offering to do a favour for his chef Iwaizumi Hajime, he ends up losing a sandal and questioning if the honeycomb he needed was really worth the dignity he lost to one Hanamaki Takahiro.
Relationships: Hanamaki Takahiro/Matsukawa Issei, Iwaizumi Hajime/Sawamura Daichi
Comments: 1
Kudos: 14





	The Bee's Knees

**Author's Note:**

> so I know this first chapter seems like I'm pushing the Iwadai agenda (because I am), but I swear this is a Matsuhana fic
> 
> thank you so much to my best bro Tameka for being my number one cheerleader, constantly encouraging me along the way!

Matsukawa is a little nervous, how could he not be? He’s only 3 weeks into a new job, not totally familiar with the kitchen, doesn’t really know where he stands with his coworkers. They all seem nice enough, they’re all clearly talented at what they do, it’s slightly intimidating. Currently they’re all gathered into the tiny office that the head chefs share. It’s the last Thursday of the month and that means it’s time to plan the next month’s menu. It’s the first time that Matsukawa has been a part of one of these meetings and he’s not really sure what’s expected of him. Does he just sit and listen? Do they want his input on their dishes? Is he supposed to suggest his own dish? Does he even have a dish to suggest?

“Good afternoon everyone. Thank you for staying late or coming in early, I really do appreciate it” Iwaizumi begins, shifting everyone’s focus to him. “First, this was a good month. June is always nice, we start getting in fresh local produce and there’s nothing better than that. I think we all did a good job at making the flavours stand out, every dish allowed the fruit to shine. As summer continues we will be getting in more produce, which brings our second piece of business. There will be a few extra shifts to pick up, someone will need to deal with all of the fruit, if not our interns are going to have their hands full.” He shoots an apologetic look at Kunimi and Kyoutani. Matsukawa contemplates taking one of the shifts, it could be beneficial to him, helping him familiarize himself with the kitchen. Before he can make up his mind Iwaizumi continues. “Now, the reason we’re all here, let’s plan next month’s menu. Who has any ideas?”

Matsukawa racks his brain for any ideas, but he can’t really come up with anything, not on the spot and not when he doesn’t know what’s going to be available to him. “Chef may I?” Yahaba begins. “What other fruits will we be getting in? And are you wanting us to only use fresh fruits or should we also be incorporating the purées we bring in?” He sends a silent thank you to Yahaba. 

“Right, how can any of you plan a menu if you don’t know what we have?” Iwaizumi chuckles at himself. “Ushijima has assured me that his cherries and peaches will be ready, either he’ll drop them off sometime this week or I’ll go pick them up.” Matsukawa perks up at the thought of peaches, he’s sure he can make some kind of dessert with them, something that lets the fruit be the star of the dish. He needs something that will compliment it, but not totally overpower the flavour.

“As for other fruits, we should be able to get more strawberries in, their season started a little early this year, but we’ll take everything we can get. We’ll also be getting in blueberries, raspberries, and blackberries. I really would like the focal point of everyone’s dishes to be local produce, but if there’s a purée that we bring in that’s going to compliment your dish feel free to use it.” 

“Chef may I?” Kyoutani asks, waiting for Iwaizumi’s nod to go ahead. “Since we didn’t do it last month and we are getting more strawberries, maybe we could do some kind of shortcake?”

“It is a classic for a reason. I’d love to see your take on it, Kyoutani. Of course you’re more than welcome to come to me, or anyone else on the team if you’re needing a hand with your plate design.”

Matsukawa can’t help but be impressed with Iwaizumi’s kindness. Not every kitchen is so willing to allow just anyone to pick the menu, let alone take the lead on plating design. Matsukawa knows that Iwaizumi owns part of the restaurant and that some chefs can be very controlling about what goes out, it’s their name on the line, so they hold everyone to a high standard. Of course Iwaizumi does have high standards, but he doesn’t belittle anyone’s ideas, he simply lends a helping hand when needed, wanting everyone on his team to succeed. 

A knock on the door brings the meeting to a halt. “Pardon the interruption everyone, Chef Iwaizumi, you were supposed to remind me about the meeting.” Standing in the doorway is Daichi, head chef and part owner of OAK. Of course Matsukawa has seen Daichi around, but since Daichi runs the culinary side of things, their interactions have been limited. 

“I did remind you about the meeting, I reminded you many times.” Iwaizumi states with a fondness in his tone. 

“You didn’t.” Daichi counters.

“I left a note at your station and one in the office.” 

“We share an office, how was I supposed to know that it wasn’t a reminder for yourself?” 

“Why would I need a reminder for my own meeting?” 

Matsukawa glances around at the other occupants of the room. He makes eye contact with Yahaba and raises his brows, hoping to convey his question ‘is this a regular thing?’ Yahaba gives a slight nod. 

“I also left two in your car.”

“There was only one in my car and it was on the steering wheel.”

“Nope, there was another in your vi-”

“In my visor,” Daichi finishes, his eyes gleaming. 

Before Matsukawa has time to fully digest what has just happened, Yahaba decides to interrupt. “Chef Daichi, if I may, was there a point for you joining the meeting?”

“Right, sorry everyone.” Daichi snaps back into a more professional mode. “As you know we like to rotate our culinary interns around, including through the pastry station. I just came by to drop off Kindaichi, so he could sit in on the meeting, I felt he could benefit from seeing your thought process.” He moves away from the door frame to reveal Kindaichi, giving him a gentle nudge into the office. “Sorry again, but good luck with your planning. I’m looking forward to tasting everything!”

Once Kindaichi is settled in, everyone focuses on Iwaizumi once again. “Kindaichi, allow me to break down our typical menu plan. I like to have 4-6 dishes, ideally half chocolate, half vanilla, and you get bonus points for a gluten free or vegan dessert.” Matsukawa is grateful for the reminder. It’s one thing to do as you’re told, work on the prep list or recreate someone else’s plate, but Matsukawa has almost forgotten the kind of stress creating your own dessert can bring. How he’s missed it. 

“So let’s keep the ball rolling, what other ideas does everyone have?”

“Chef may I?” Yahaba begins, waiting for any sign of confirmation to go on. Iwaizumi gives a nod. “Perhaps some kind of chocolate and cherry mousse?”

“If you do a vanilla mousse, it could be a play on Black Forest, of course if that’s what you would like your dish to be, Yahaba.”

“It is a good idea chef, maybe if I do a vanilla mousse that can rest on maybe a chocolate sponge, or maybe a sablé?”

“I like where you’re going with this. I think I have the perfect chocolate glaze for you, Yahaba. And you’re comfortable coming up with your plate design.”

“Absolutely, chef!”

“Okay, I’ll leave it in your hands. Let me know if we have all of the right silicone molds for what you want.”

“Thank you, Chef Iwaizumi.”

“Kunimi, let’s hear your suggestion.” Iwaizumi states. Kunimi looks unfazed by the demand, but it makes Matsukawa panic slightly. He has the beginnings of an idea, but not a fully formed dish. 

“We still have those pill shaped molds?” Kunimi asks. 

“We do.”

Kunimi lets out a sigh, collecting his thoughts. “A blackberry mousse, served on top of a lemon sablé. I need a little more time to come up with other elements.” 

“Of course, take your time.”

Matsukawa let out a small breath of relief. He doesn’t need to have a full dish, he can do this. Now is his chance to speak up, he’d rather start on his own than be called upon. “Chef may I?” The words feel unfamiliar leaving Matsukawa’s mouth. His last job was at a bakery and his old boss didn’t care for the formalities that most chefs prefer. 

“Go ahead Matsukawa.”

“It’s not a fully formed idea, but I was thinking that poached peaches would be great. I’d like to try and incorporate brown butter somewhere in the dish.”

“Okay, this sounds like it has a lot of potential. Your flavour pairings sound good. Is there anything else you want to include?”

“I’ve personally never made it, but maybe a wildflower and honeycomb ice cream.”

“But you have a recipe?”

“I do chef.”

“Okay, I really like the flavours you have, I’ll give you some time to come up with your plate. Let me know if you need a hand.”

“Thank you chef.”

Matsukawa takes a moment to relax, appreciative for Iwaizumi’s kindness. Matsukawa was worried about applying for this job, it had been a while since he worked in a kitchen like this, but Iwaizumi makes his kitchen a welcoming environment. He’s attentive and kind, wanting everyone on his team to succeed. 

“Kindaichi, do you have anything you’d like to suggest?”

Kindaichi’s eyes widen, you can see the gears in his head turning. “Um, chef, well it’s summer, so maybe some kind of cold dessert.”

“Cold dessert is good, but specify a little more please.”

“Of course chef, sorry. Well if you’re wanting it to be vegan, a sorbet or granita?”

“Granita you say? Are you up for that challenge?”

“Um, yes?” Matsukawa can’t help, but be impressed with Kindaichi. Matsukawa has only made granita a few times, but the process does tend to be annoying; running into the freezer every half hour to stir and running the chance of over mixing, ruining the texture and wasting the time spent making the frozen dessert. Of course if it is over mixed it’s not the end of the world, but what makes granita stand out is the icy texture.

“That’s what we like to hear! Now talk to me about flavours. How is it going to be plated?”

“Oh, um.” Hearing this Matsukawa isn’t too sure how he himself would plate granita, once again reminding himself that he’s been out of the game for far too long. 

“Chef, if I may.” Kunimi intervenes. “I saw this post on Instagram, it was granita served over whipped coconut cream.”

“Interesting. Similar appearance to a pavlova?”

“Yeah, it looked pretty similar.” With that piece of information Matsukawa can begin to piece together what the dish might look like: a bed of coconut whipped cream, the granita placed on top, the colour contrasting beautifully with the white cream, maybe some citrus zest or pieces of fresh fruit scattered all over. 

“Okay Kindaichi, granita and whipped coconut cream. What flavours would you like to work with?”

“Um coconut, let’s see. Passion fruit, if we have it? And maybe raspberry?”

“We do have passion fruit purée, but I think I’m going to have to veto the raspberry, I’m worried that overall it might be too sour.” 

“Right, of course chef.” Kindaichi tries to not be too disappointed with himself. 

“Really Kindaichi, it’s a good idea. If you do strawberry instead of raspberry I think you’ll be able to come up with a great dish.” Iwaizumi does his best to reassure Kindaichi. “And you do get bonus points for a vegan and gluten free dish, so far no one else has made their dish with either of those factors.”

“Thank you, chef.” A small smile forming on Kindaichi’s face. 

“Okay, so that makes five dishes, not all of them are vanilla, but I would like it if someone would be able to incorporate chocolate into their dish, even some kind of chocolate garnish would work. I’ll give you all until Tuesday to come up with a final plate design. You’re all more than welcome to come to me with help for your plate, but don’t be afraid to ask your coworkers for a hand. Now let’s see,” Iwaizumi glances at his watch, “we’ll say that our meeting lasted for half an hour, be sure to include it when you time out. With that, you’re all dismissed.”

Everyone rises to their feet. Matsukawa takes a moment to have a quick stretch. He waves at Iwaizumi before exiting out of the office. He glances at his own watch, seeing that he has 15 minutes before it’s time for the staff meal. He takes a look around trying to spot Kunimi. Where could the kid have gone? The meeting just ended. Before he can begin his pursuit of Kunimi he’s pulled into the dining area. 

“Mattsun! How was the meeting? It was your first time, right?” He’s asked by Oikawa. 

“Yeah, it was my first one, but I think it went fine. I didn’t have a complete dish to present, but chef seemed to like my ideas.”

“Chef,” Oikawa uses finger quotes, “how cute. He’s not here, you can just call him Iwaizumi. I’ll even let you use my nickname for him, call him Iwa-chan.”

“Thanks, but I think I’ll pass. As nice as he is, we all weren’t childhood best friends with him.”

“You act like he’s scary.”

“I’m not scared of him, I just respect him, there’s a difference.” 

“Sure, if you say so.” Oikawa teases. 

“Okay, maybe when I first interviewed for the position and my first week here, I was a little scared of him. Can you blame me though? It’s Iwaizumi Hajime, he’s made quite the name for himself in the pastry world.” Matsukawa says, trying to defend himself. 

“There you go again, being cute. I mean you’re not wrong, he’s accomplished quite a lot in the last few years.” Matsukawa can hear the pride in Oikawa’s voice. “But still, there’s no need for you to be nervous. You’re just as good of a pastry chef. I wouldn’t have recommended you for the job if you weren’t.”

“Thank you again, for letting me know about the job. When you said that your friend was looking for a pastry chef, I don’t know what I was expecting, but it definitely wasn’t working under Iwaizumi.”

“Stop putting him on a pedestal. How many times do I need to tell you that you’re just as good. I’m sure you could be running your own pastry department or bakery or whatever it is that you want to be doing.”

“Thank you, Oikawa.” Matsukawa says once again, hoping to convey all of his gratitude towards his friend. “So, when you said your pastry chef friend who opened up a popular restaurant with his partner is hiring, you meant partner, in every sense of the word?” 

“What do you mean?”

“Iwaizumi and Daichi, are they dating?” Matsukawa has been curious since Daichi’s interruption at the meeting.

“Dating? No,” Oikawa begins and Matsukawa raises a single eyebrow. “Their third wedding anniversary is coming up soon, I believe it’s just over two weeks away.” Hearing this, Matsukawa loses control of his eyebrows, both of them shooting up. 

“Married?! For almost three years? Some guys really do have all the luck.”

“Jealous?”

“A little. I mean we’re all the same age, but clearly the two of them have their lives together.”

“Hey, don’t be rude! How do you know I don’t have my life together?” 

“Because when I met you while we were both still in college, you were starting a tourism degree. What do you even do with a tourism degree?” 

“Okay, Mattsun, you don’t need to call me out like that. I’ll have you know that at the very least, I’m currently seeing someone.”

“You’ve got me there.”

“Weren’t you dating someone in college?”

“Yeah, but that was almost 6 years ago.”

“And you’ve not dated anyone since?”

“Nothing really serious, no one that I could see myself marrying and opening up a business with.”

“Stop idolizing Iwaizumi.”

“It's hard not to.”

“He is quite happy.”

The two friends allow a comfortable silence to fall, only for it to almost immediately be broken. “Tooru! I was sent to wrangle you to the staff meal.” 

“Of course, come on Mattsun, let’s see what Koushi has prepared for us today.”

* * *

After a truly delicious meal, Matsukawa thinks that it’s almost a crime to have to work. He’s just changed into his whites, ready to head into the kitchen when he remembers that he never tracked down Kunimi. He decides to stick around the change rooms, knowing that the kid has to show up soon. He pulls out his notebook and begins to attempt a plate design. He’s halfway through his first draft when he finally sees Kunimi approaching. “Hey, how’d the rest of your shift go?”

“It was fine.” Kunimi shrugs. “Although I’ve somehow been roped into helping Kindaichi with his plate design.”

“Well, you did give a suggestion during the meeting.”

“It doesn’t mean that I want to help on two plates though.”

“Yeah, but you’re good at plating. The tart dish that you came up with this month is beautiful.” Matsukawa can’t help, but be a little jealous of Kunimi’s skills. He thinks back to when he was still interning at his first restaurant and how much he struggled coming up with plate ideas. He still struggles with them now, but he’s slowly learned to be more confident in his designs. 

“Thanks.”

“I mean it. Plus you should consider yourself lucky that Iwaizumi puts that much faith in you to lend a hand with Kindaichi’s dish. I mean not every chef let just anyone help with their menu planning.” Matsukawa knows this from past experience.

“Oikawa was right, you really do admire him.”

“There’s nothing wrong with that, he’s simply a good chef.”

“Is it weird that you’re the same age and you consider him a role model?”

“I don’t consider him a role model.” Kunimi raises his eyebrows. “How does anyone not see him as a role model? He’s 25, running a very popular restaurant, he’s married, he’s made quite the name for himself in the pastry world. Have you seen his Instagram? Anna Olson, the Anna Olson follows him on Instagram. He’s made two custom chocolates Kunimi! He went to France to make them, you can only buy them through this restaurant.” 

“Okay, you love him, I get it. Is there a reason you’re lurking outside of the change rooms, or were you just waiting for anyone to come up so you could sprout your love for Iwaizumi.” 

“I was waiting for you actually. I wanted to say thank you for making that pie.”

“Oh, it really wasn’t that big of a deal. Like you said, we already had all of the ingredients prepped for service.”

“Yeah, but you could have made anything for the staff meal. Besides, strawberry rhubarb is one of my favourite pies. So thank you.” Matsukawa knows that Kunimi didn’t make the pie just for him, but he still appreciates the thought and the fact that Kunimi took his advice. 

“You’re welcome, I guess. Now hurry up and get into the kitchen, you don’t want to be late, or whatever.”

“Right, have a goodnight, see you tomorrow.”

“See you tomorrow, you weirdo.”

Matsukawa smiles as he makes his way to the kitchen. 

* * *

“Thank you so much Matsukawa, I really do appreciate it.”

“Chef, it’s no problem at all. I feel like I’m really the one who’s going to benefit from this.”

It’s Tuesday morning and Matsukawa has just arrived in the kitchen, ready to take on a prep shift. 

“You’re sure you don’t mind that Kyoutani is taking over your shift tonight? You could do some sort of split shift if you want.”

“No, it’s fine. I don’t mind having to do some prep and I’m sure Kyoutani is more than happy to have a change of pace working through service.” Matsukawa knows that if he were in Kyoutani’s shoes he would be more than grateful to be working through service and Matsukawa really isn’t one for split shifts.

“Okay, well, ideally you, Kunimi, and Kindaichi can get the whole list done, but because we just got the first half of our produce I won’t blame you if you don’t finish. Normally, I’d oversee everything, but I’m going to trust our interns to you. Coffee’s just been brewed, help yourself. If anyone needs anything, I’ll be in the office going over everyone’s plate designs and working on our order list for this week.” With that Iwaizumi heads off into the office. 

“Okay kids, where should we start?” Matsukawa asks. 

“Stop acting like you’re that much older than us, you’re only four years older.” Kunimi states. 

“Four years is a lot, actually. Back when I was in my early twenties I was a mess.”

“And you’re not currently a mess?”

“Go get yourself some coffee, young man. Are you always mean in the mornings?”

“Don’t need to tell me twice.” Kunimi begins his trek across the kitchen towards the coffee machine. 

“Chef Matsukawa, what would you like me to do?” Kindaichi asks. 

“Ah, Kindaichi, my favourite culinary intern. I think that the two of you can work on the prep for tonight and tomorrow’s service and I will start dealing with the fruit. Then when the two of you finish, you can help me with the fruit. How does that sound?”

“It sounds like a plan, chef Matsukawa.”

Kindaichi begins pulling out equipment and recipes, while Matsukawa brings the first box of cherries to his station and begins his search for the pitter. Kunimi joins the two of them, dropping off a cup at each of their work spaces. 

A few hours pass by and Matsukawa must be on his third cup of coffee by now. After pitting cherries for 20 minutes, he realized that gloves were invented for a reason. He wore a pair while pitting the rest, but the damage had already been done, he can only hope that his hands won’t be stained red for too long. He’s moved on to blanching and peeling peaches. He puts some aside for his own dish that they’ll start serving tomorrow, while slicing a majority of the others and placing into mason jars, that he’ll start canning when he finishes the first box. 

“Okay, does anyone have any lunch requests?” Iwaizumi asks. “I have to run a few errands, we need some things before our new menu launch tomorrow.”

“I’m fine with whatever chef.” Kunimi replies, Kindaichi also nodding in agreement. 

“Yeah, surprise us chef.” Matsukawa adds. 

“Okay, I’ll try my best to surprise you. I shouldn’t be more than 2 hours. Matsukawa, keep holding down the fort until I get back.”

“Yes chef!”

* * *

The prep shift ends sooner than Matsukawa expects. They were close to completing the whole list, but the berries got the best of them. He’s just enjoyed another staff meal and has changed back into his street clothes, making his way out of the change rooms. He’s met with Iwaizumi, waiting in the hallway. “Chef, waiting for me?” 

“I am, actually. Do you mind coming to my office before you head out?” Iwaizumi leads the way to the office. Matsukawa follows behind, instantly panicking, going through everything he’s done today, trying to remember if anything went wrong. 

They enter the office, Iwaizumi gesturing to a chair, while he himself makes his way to sit behind the desk. Once they are both seated Iwaizumi finally registers Matsukawa’s panicked look. 

“Matsukawa, you don’t need to panic, sorry I should have started with saying that you’re not in trouble. You did a fine job today.” Matsukawa let out a breath that he was unaware of holding. “I need to ask you a favour.”

“What is it, chef?”

“While I was running my errands today, I forgot to stop by the honey farm and pick up the honeycomb for your dish. Normally I would just pick it up tomorrow morning, but the new menu launches tomorrow and I need to oversee the interns prep. So, if you’re free tomorrow I was hoping you might be able to pick it up? It’s a little out of the way. Of course you’ll be paid for it and we’ll reimburse your gas.”

“Oh, sure, why not? I don’t mind doing a bit of driving.” Matsukawa is more than happy to do this errand, the honeycomb is for his dish and at this point he’s over the moon over not being in trouble with Iwaizumi that he’s ready to do anything for his chef. 

“Thank you so much. I’m not really too sure what happened, I really try to be more organized than this. I think it just has to do with the extra amount of work and planning while we're getting all of our produce and Daichi wanting to try a new intern rotation.”

“Plus your anniversary is coming up, I hear.”

The reminder brings a smile filled with happiness to Iwaizumi’s face. “Plus that’s coming up. I have an idea of what I’d like us to do, but it falls on a Tuesday and we both need to be here.” 

“Next Tuesday?”

“No, in two weeks, on the fourteenth.”

“Well, feel free to say no, but I don’t mind coming in to cover for you during the day if you’d like. I’m not really too sure if it helps with your plans or not, but anything I can do to help.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, of course! I really enjoyed the prep shift today.” Matsukawa feels that he did really benefit from it, he’s a little more familiar with the equipment’s placement. He also feels more comfortable in the kitchen overall. 

“Well, I’ll talk to Daichi and see what he would like to do but, I know that Suga is more than capable of overseeing the prep or running the service for the night. I’ll have to get back to you on that.”

“Okay, returning to our original piece of business, what time should I pick up the honeycomb tomorrow?”

“Right, I’m pretty sure Makki is fine with you showing up whenever, but I’d suggest heading over right when they open, which I believe is around 10. Then you have time to run it here so that it can be swirled into your ice cream and it has time to set before service.”

“Sounds like a fine plan chef.”

“Okay, then you’re dismissed. Have a goodnight Matsukawa.”

“Thanks chef. I hope service goes well for you tonight.”

* * *

With a coffee in hand, well in his cup holder, Matsukawa is ready for the 40 minute drive to Hiro’s Honey Farm. It’s 9am, but he figures there’s a high probability that he’ll get lost on the drive up. And after all these years “early is on time, on time is late, and late is unacceptable” is still drilled into his head. 

As Matsukawa makes his way up the mountain, he finds himself relaxing. The sun is shining, he has his windows rolled down, enjoying the nice gentle breeze. The scenery is breathtaking, he passes many fields, the aroma of fresh cut grass fills his car. He sees a variety of trees, some with fruit begging to be picked. 

His GPS tells him he’s 10 minutes away from his destination. Of course the closer he gets, the more he realizes the GPS is unnecessary. He’s passed many colourful signs in the shapes of arrows reading “Hiro’s Honey Farm” and he knows that he’s heading in the right direction. 

He begins slowing down, as the next and probably last sign reads “Hiro’s Honey Farm is on the next left”. Following the signs order, he takes the next left turn, admiring the many fields plotted along the driveway. He soon approaches a wooden building and figures this must be the storefront. He parks in what he can only assume is a makeshift parking lot. Exiting his car he walks up to the building, observing the variety of flowers lining the building. 

Matsukawa approaches the door, the sign hanging up hand painted reads “welcome to Hiro’s Honey Farm”. Below he sees another sign, stating it’s business hours are from 11-5. He takes a glance at his watch, it’s 9:40. He can only hope that Makki won’t mind that he’s early. He tries his luck, tugging on the door, it opens, a small tinkling sound, indicating his arrival. 

“Asahi, is that you?” Matsukawa hears a deep voice asking from somewhere in the room.

“Um, hi, sorry I’m not Asahi.” Matsukawa begins. 

A head pops up from behind the counter. “Sorry sir, we don’t open for,” the head turns to glance at a clock, “another hour and twenty minutes.”

“Right, Iwaizumi was pretty sure that you opened at 10. I should have double checked, but he seemed pretty confident that it was 10.”

“Iwaizumi, you say?” 

“Yes, he sent me to pick up some honeycomb.”

“And did he send you with anything for me?”

“No? Was he supposed to?” Matsukawa is fairly confident that he didn’t need to stop in at the restaurant this morning before making his way up to the honey farm.

“Technically no, but I think that it’s the least he could do after bailing on me yesterday.”

“Oh, um, are you Makki?”

“That’s Hanamaki to you.”

“Right, sorry. I’m Matsukawa, I just started working at OAK this past month.”

“That’s nice.” Hanamaki states. “Listen, I don’t really have time for all of the formalities right now. Just give me a moment and I’ll go grab that honeycomb.” 

Hanamaki is off, taking a door into another room before Mattsun can reply. Mattsun will admit he didn’t have his expectations too high for his morning, but this isn’t the way he thought things would go. He takes a glance at the wall in front of him, lined with candles carved into the shapes of hives, flowers, and even a few bears. Before Matsukawa can take a look around the rest of the shop Hanamaki returns. 

Hanamaki slides a package on to the counter. “Okay, so where’s the cheque?”

“The cheque?”

“Yeah, the cheque, to pay for the honeycomb.”

“Sorry, Iwaizumi didn’t say anything about a cheque.” Matsukawa is really racking his brain, now questioning if he was supposed to check in at Oak this morning. 

“They didn’t send you up with a cheque?”

“No, but how much is it? I can pay with my card.”

“I don’t have time to wait for the system to boot up. I’m going to take a wild guess and assume that you don’t have any cash.”

“I don’t.”

“Okay, so we’re in a bit of a tight spot. Since I don’t know you and I don’t know for a fact that you actually work at OAK I’m going to need you to leave some kind of collateral.”

“Collateral?” Matsukawa asks, not too sure if he likes where this conversation is going. 

“Collateral, like a set of keys or a piece of ID, something that you’ll come back for. I need to know that I’ll be getting paid for this honeycomb.” Hanamaki explains. 

Matsukawa begins patting his pockets and pulls out a key ring. He flips every key, trying to remember what they’re for. “How about my mail key?” He asks. 

“No, that’s not important enough. How do I know you don’t let your mail pile up for a month before you finally check your box?”

He returns his keys to his pocket and pulls out his wallet, once again searching for some kind of collateral. He’s completely oblivious to Hanamaki’s rising impatience. 

“Okay, I don’t have time for this. Give me one of your sandals.” Hanamaki demands. 

“Just one?” Matsukawa questions. 

“Yes, just one. If you leave both maybe you’ll decide that you’re better off just leaving them here.”

“Will you walk me to my car first?” Matsukawa feels like this is a reasonable request, he really isn’t wanting to walk barefoot back to his car.

“What? No, just grab your honeycomb and leave your sandal. I have other things that I need to do.”

And that’s exactly what Matsukawa does. He makes his way back to his car, being mindful of where he steps with his single bare foot. After making sure the honeycomb is secure in the backseat, he settles down in the driver seat and lets out a sigh. Definitely not the way he thought his morning would go. 

* * *

Mattsun is sitting in the staff parking lot, contemplating what to do. He knows that he shouldn’t walk through the kitchen, it’s dangerous, even if he had both of his sandals, he would hesitate to walk through the kitchen. Maybe he should stop wearing sandals. He realizes he only has one option. 

He presses Iwaizumi’s name in his phone and hopes that he’s not too busy to answer his phone right now. “Matsukawa, what is it? Were you able to find Hiro’s okay?”

“Hey chef, yeah, I was able to find it okay. I actually have the honeycomb now and I’m out in the parking lot.”

“Great! Why don’t you come in and you can stir the honeycomb into your ice cream?”

“Sounds good chef, just one small thing. Do you think you could bring me my kitchen shoes from my locker?” He’s hoping that Iwaizumi won’t ask any questions at this time.

“You should be fine in your sandals, just don’t linger in the kitchen.”

“Well, the thing is, I only have one sandal.”

Iwaizumi pauses before asking, “Why?”

“I feel like it’s better to explain in person.”

“Okay, I’ll be right out.”

With that Matsukawa hangs up his phone and waits for Iwaizumi to come to the rescue. He’s a little embarrassed, but what could he have done? He didn’t want to keep upsetting Hanamaki, he probably would have released the bees on Matsukawa. 

A knock on the window interrupts his thoughts. Matsukawa is quick to open his door, a sheepish grin on his face. “Hey chef, how's your morning been?” 

“It’s been fine. Matsukawa why do you only have one shoe?” Iwaizumi is quick to the point. 

“Well,” Matsukawa begins, a little hesitant. “The thing is, I’m pretty sure that Hanamaki does not like me, though I’m not too sure what I’ve ever done to offend the guy.”

“That’s strange, you two seem so alike, I thought you would have hit it off.”

“If I’m being honest chef, I think he’s upset with you more than anything. He did not seem to enjoy the fact that you never showed up yesterday, then he was disappointed that you didn’t send me with something for him. Was I supposed to bring him something?” Matukawa asks. 

“No, you weren’t supposed to bring anything, but I should have sent you up with something, like a tart or some cookies, some kind of goodies.” Iwaizumi pauses. “None of this explains why you only have one shoe.”

“Right, so he was overall disappointed in the lack of goodies, I suppose and he just seemed to be in a bad mood. So when I told him that you didn’t send me up with a cheque and that I had no cash to pay for the honeycomb he demanded some kind of collateral and my mail key wasn’t good enough for him, he told me to leave just one shoe.”

“Matsukawa, I’m so sorry that I forgot to send you without a cheque.” Iwaizumi expresses. “Why did he only want one shoe?”

“Because, and I quote, if you leave both then maybe you’ll decide your better off just leaving them here.” Matsukawa explains. “Is he always like that?”

“No, I swear he’s a really nice guy. He’s done a lot to help us out. He’s also entering his busy season with honey production and his tours have been getting more popular over the years. He hasn’t realized it, so he tends to get overwhelmed with everything he needs to be doing.”

“What kind of tours does he do?” Matsukawa is curious. What could be so interesting about a honey farm?

“I believe he calls them educational tours, he talks about the importance of bees, I think he also touches on sustainable agriculture and then he shows off his hives.” Iwaizumi pauses, “I think I’ll talk to Daichi about this, but I’m thinking that it might be nice if we all took the tour.” Matsukawa isn’t too sure what kind of expression he’s giving, but it’s one to make Iwaizumi chuckle. “I swear, Makki really is a nice guy, he’s normally more friendly. He also really knows his stuff when it comes to his bees. Besides, it might give you some inspiration for next month’s dish.”

“I guess I’ll have to take your word for it then, chef.” Matsukawa isn’t too sure if he’s referring to Hanamaki of the bee tour or the possibility of finding inspiration, but it’s been a long morning and Matsukawa doesn’t have it in him to argue with Iwaizumi.

“For now, let’s get into the kitchen. I’m sure that your ice cream is going to be worth all the trouble this has caused you.” and with that, Iwaizumi passes Matsukawa his kitchen shoes. 

Not wanting to linger any longer than necessary, Matsukawa quickly swaps his single sandal for his clogs and reaches into his back seat for the honeycomb.

**Author's Note:**

> originally I wanted to have this finished in time for Matsuhana day, but that didn't happen so then I was hoping I could get it done for second Matsuhana day, but that also didn't happen. I also just keep coming up with new ideas for this so I decided that I should at least start posting it
> 
> also naming restaurants is so hard 0/10 would recommend
> 
> please talk to me on [ twitter](https://twitter.com/matSWAGkawa) about matsuhana, seijoh, or haikyuu in general


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